AI 10 2-24-11 The Longest Reveal Ever

The elimination of one hopeful broke Jennifer’s heart. Will she find the strength to go on? After Chris Medina’s sad walk out the room, production stops as Jennifer deals with this hard emotional crazy road. This is AMERICAN IDOL!

Cry me a river Jennifer because in my wildest imagination I never for a moment thought you would not be able to move forward. After all, you did sign a contract, which comes with a 12 million dollar paycheck. If you do not want the job any more I will certainly step in on your behalf.

Producers can we please stop the constant replay of this over dramatic and not very convincing moment in time because it is beginning to annoy me. When I am annoyed, I can get testy and angry and trust me you do not want to see me get angry.

We have two hours for the judges to reveal the remaining 19 spots for the top 24. This reveal show will go down in history as the longest ever. I did not think it was ever going to end. There was the crying, the continuous fake-outs, which do not work after 10 seasons, and we probably, could have cut out a half hour if the judges did not repeat the fact they only have 24 spots to fill. Really, I would never have guessed after watching this show for the last 9 seasons.

I will give credit where credit is due because the producers at least let us see the final performance of everyone making it into the top 24. This is a vocal competition to find a singer but year after year we hear very little of the performers sing. I offer kudos to the producers for finally show casing the singing brief as they were. Teasing us with some musical talent ensures we will want to come back to hear them again.

Apparently, Jennifer remembers her big paycheck because she is able to compose herself in a very short five minutes and we are on the road to our top 24.

Karen Rodriquez is first up to learn her fate. Her final performance was a Selena song, which she sang in Spanish. Even though I do not understand Spanish, I had no problems in hearing the emotion in her voice as she sang. Karen has the pipes to go far. Jennifer says she has been a fan since the beginning but she worries that Karen disappeared in the middle of the competition, which made their vote very difficult. You are through to the top 24.

Robbie Rosen takes the long walk while we see his final performance where he sang, “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word.” This kid has talent and his falsetto is beautiful. Steven tells Robbie he sang his ass off. Robbie needs to understand this is a tough competition but you are moving forward to the top 24. Randy loves how unassuming Robbie is in his genius.

Tatynisa Wilson is the next contestant to learn she is through to the top 24. I did not think her singing voice was anything special. Brittany Mazur and Jimmie Allen on the other hand must return home as their journey ends.

Tim Halperin makes the long walk to his judgment while we hear his final performance of an original song. I really enjoyed the song. Tim receives the happy news he is on to the top 24.

Julie Zorrilla takes the journey to learn her fate. I did not recognize the song she sang for her final performance but the little we heard demonstrated some serious vocal talent. Jennifer explains the connection to the lyric was missing at times but you have a beautiful voice. Randy advises her to feel, not think. Julie is through to the next round.

Scott McCreery is our next victim and during his final performance does a kick ass rendition of “Long Black Train.” Scott passes a message to Jennifer from his grandmother, “I am a quarter Puerto Rican even if you cannot tell.” Randy gushes, “I love the authenticity. We are big fans.” Scott is through to the top 24.

John Wayne Schultz is not lucky as his journey ends here. I do think he took the news well saying he feels as if he tripped over the finish line. I am blessed to get to this point.

Jovany Barreto is happy because he makes it through to the top 24.

Lauren Turner is next up for learning her fate. Her final performance of “Steal Away” was excellent. I really like the tone of her voice. Randy explains her Hollywood week journey had many ups and downs, however, you are moving forward to the next round.

Tiwan Strong and Eryn Kelly learn their journey ends tonight.

Rachel Zevita does not want to disappoint her 82-year-old grandmother who flew in to support her. During her final performance before the judges, she goes with “Speechless” and I cannot say I was impressed. What is up with all the screaming this season? The judges indicate her journey has been full of inconsistencies and Rachel says she is just trying to figure out what they want from her. Randy says just to be you. Steven tells her she is going through.

Kendra Chantelle reprises her audition song, “Fallin’” for her final performance and it was okay but nothing special. The judges tell her how amazing it is to get this far but Kendra responds it would be even more amazing to make it farther. We then cut to her returning to the waiting room where she tries for the fake out before telling everyone she is through.

Jordan Dorsey is next as we hear his final performance going with “So High.” The judges ask about his behavior during the group rounds and Jordan tries to spin his behavior in a positive way by indicating he wanted to make sure the group worked. The judges cut to the chase and give Jordan is chance.

Lauren Alaina is our next contestant to hear their final judgment. I do have to say her outfit was way over the top and not in a good way. Lauren seems to think she is attending a square dance in her purple ruffled skirt and those sparkling pink cowboy boots. The outfit just made me ill. I seriously was laughing as she made her way to the chair of doom. Lauren’s final performance was with “Unchained Melody” which sounds good. Steven explains there were a few rough patches in her road here but she is going through.

Stefano Langone opts for an original song for his final performance. I think Stefano has a good voice but his song writing skills did not impress me. The judges on the other hand send him through to the top 24.

Jackie Wilson is next but during her final performance of “Because of You”, she fumbled the lyrics and her voice was not in key, she was sharp during the portion we heard. Jackie’s journey ends tonight and she asks the judges why she is out. Randy explains consistency and confidence were the key factors in her elimination.

Jacob Lusk makes the long journey to learn his fate. I do like Jacob and I think he has a great voice and a unique tone. Jacob definitely has the personality as well. For his final performance, Jacob goes with “A Song for you” and he toned down his vocal gymnastics a bit. Randy tells him that his performance of “God Bless the Child” was the best performance on Idol EVER! Jacob is safe.

Pia Toscano has been down the Idol road before although she has never made it to the final judgment. For her final performance Pia sings, “Doesn’t Mean Anything” and for what we heard, I liked it. The judges cut to the chase as Pia moves forward.

James Durbin takes the long walk to face the judges. I am just happy he lost the faux Mohawk for this part of the show. James has raw talent but he needs training and control. The constant screaming is not necessary and often times are sharp and off key. James needs to try to avoid the Adam Lambert comparisons because it will hurt him in the end. I was sorry to see he chose “A Change is Gonna Come,” for his final performance because Adam blew this song out of the ballpark during the finale of season 8. The judges give James the good news he is moving forward.

Casey Abrams is the next victim to hear his fate. I have to say I like this guy and he won points from me during the introduction of his final performance saying, “I am here to prove people like me can be sexy.” Casey then proves it by giving a beautifully controlled vocal performance of “Why Don’t You Do Right.” I give the guy credit for picking an interesting song, changing up the tempo, and nailing the entire thing. Randy tells Casey he is the most talented musician in the series entire history. Given this comment it is was no surprise that Casey is moving on.

There is only one spot left for the woman but two contestants left in the waiting room. This can only mean drama is coming. Thia Megia and Jessica Cunningham must take the walk together. We get to see Thia’s final performance of “You raise me up.” Jessica tells the judges today is her 25th birthday and it is her seventh Idol audition. The judges put Thia through while Jessica is heading home again.

Jessica does not take the news well throwing a huge hissy fit while flipping the bird, “You ruined my birthday!” Now every year she will have to relieve the memory of being cut on her birthday! Give me a freaking break, life is tough, deal with it. Your birthday is simply another date on the calendar. You opened yourself up for this moment by auditioning for the seventh time after being cut six times before. Get over it!

There is now one spot left for the men but three waiting for a decision. Brett Loewenstern, Jacee Badeaux and Colton Dixon take the walk together. Brett asks them to hold hands. Jacee’s final performance was with “Gone too soon” and I did not think it was very good. Jacee was off key and having breathing problems. Brett performed one of his original songs, “Bulletproof Vest” and I really liked the song and his performance. The judges have chosen Brett for the final spot which means Jacee and Colton are going home. At least both of them are so young they will have another chance to try out. Hell they can now try out for Simon’s new show, “The X Factor.”

Brett is a classy kid because I loved how out in the holding room he was trying to help Jacee and Colton embracing them and proclaiming, “We are all shining stars.”

The judges have brought us to this point and we have our top 24. Next week America takes over.

Now it is time for the top 24 to dance!

Your top 12 men are:
Casey Abrams
Jovany Barreto
Jordan Dorsey
James Durbin
Clint Jun Gamboa
Tim Halperin
Stefano Langone
Brett Loewenstern
Jacob Lusk
Scott McCreery
Paul McDonald
Robbie Rosen

The top 12 women are:
Naima Adedapo
Lauren Alaina
Kendra Chantelle
Ashton Jones
Thia Megia
Haley Reinhart
Karen Rodriguez
Pia Toscano
Lauren Turner
TaTynisa Wilson
Rachel Zevita
Julie Zorrilla

Starting next week, we will have three nights of Idol. The men will perform on Tuesday, the women on Wednesday and the elimination will be Thursday. My schedule is extremely busy so it will be a challenge to watch, vote, and blog. My guess is I will be taping many and trying to get votes in at the last minute. Luckily, my voting fingers are in working order.

Until we meet again!